Trump’s address blended military claims, economic concerns and global oil tensions, while signalling both a possible endgame and the risk of sharper escalation in the coming weeks.
LIVE Updates | US–Israel–Iran War: Trump lauds Israel as 'great ally' that knows how to win; Iran asserts full control over Hormuz
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (local time) said the American military campaign against Iran is close to achieving its goals, while warning that the next few weeks could see even more intense strikes if negotiations fail.
In his first major national address since the conflict began in late February, Trump presented the operation as fast-moving and decisive. He also linked the war to global oil tensions and called on countries dependent on Middle East crude to take responsibility for protecting key shipping routes.
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Trump said the ongoing operation had delivered results in just over a month, far quicker than earlier American conflicts.
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“We are in this military operation… for 32 days, and the country has been eviscerated and essentially is really no longer a threat,” he said.
To underline the contrast, he listed timelines of past wars, saying World War I lasted one year, seven months and five days, World War II ran for three years, eight months and 25 days, the Korean War lasted three years, one month and two days, the Vietnam War went on for 19 years, five months and 29 days, and Iraq lasted eight years, eight months and 28 days.
Trump said the US would step up military action if diplomacy fails.
He warned that American forces could “take them back to the stone ages where they belong” within the next two to three weeks.
He added that Washington has its “eyes on key targets” and could strike Iran’s electric generating plants if there is no agreement. He also said oil facilities have not been targeted so far, but could be.
“We are going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks,” he said, adding that operations would continue until US objectives are fully achieved.
The US President said Iran’s military capacity has been significantly weakened.
He claimed Iran’s navy is gone, its air force is in ruins, many of its leaders are dead, and its missile and drone capabilities have been sharply reduced. Weapons factories and launch systems have also been destroyed, he said.
“They have no anti-aircraft equipment, their radar is 100 per cent annihilated. We are unstoppable as a military force,” he said.
Trump said these actions are aimed at crippling Iran’s military strength, limiting its ability to support proxies, and preventing it from acquiring a nuclear weapon. “I have vowed that I would never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
Trump said the core goals of the campaign are close to being achieved.
“I am pleased to say that these core strategic objectives are nearing completion,” he said, according to ANI.
He added that the US is “on the cusp of ending Iran’s sinister threat to America and the world” and is “on track to complete all of America’s objectives shortly, very shortly.”
Trump shifted focus to global energy routes, blaming Iran for disruptions and rising fuel prices.
He said recent increases in gasoline prices were due to “the Iranian regime launching deranged terror attacks against commercial oil tankers”.
He then urged countries that rely on oil passing through the Strait of Hormuz to take responsibility for securing it.
“They must grab it and cherish it,” he said, adding that such countries should “go to the strait and just take it, protect it”.
He also told such nations they should have acted earlier and should now “build up some delayed courage.”
Trump also used the address to highlight US energy production.
“America has plenty of gas. We have so much gas,” he said, adding that the US is the “number one producer of oil and gas on the planet.”
He said the country does not need Middle Eastern oil and suggested that domestic output would help stabilise prices once the conflict ends.
Trump said regime change was not the stated goal of the operation.
However, he said leadership in Iran had already shifted following the deaths of senior figures.
“Regime change was not our goal… but regime change has occurred because of all of their original leader’s death. They’re all dead. The new group is less radical and much more reasonable,” he said, suggesting a possible opening for negotiations.
Trump said talks are ongoing even as military pressure continues.
“At the same time, discussions are ongoing,” he said, while warning that failure to reach a deal would trigger further strikes on key infrastructure.
He said the US had deliberately avoided targeting Iran’s oil facilities so far, but made clear that option remains available.
Trump thanked key partners in West Asia, including Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain.
“They’ve been great, and we will not let them get hurt or fail in any way, shape or form,” he said, reaffirming US backing for its allies.
Trump linked rising fuel prices to the conflict and warned of broader risks if Iran develops nuclear weapons.
“This is yet more proof that Iran can never be trusted with nuclear weapons. They will use them, and they will use them quickly,” he said.
He added that such a scenario could lead to “decades of extortion, economic pain and instability worse than we can ever imagine.”
Trump said the operation, launched as “Operation Epic Fury,” had delivered “swift, decisive, overwhelming victories on the battlefield” over the past four weeks.
He said the US was “winning bigger than ever before” and described the campaign as moving towards its final phase, even as further strikes remain possible.
Trump referred to the deaths of 13 American service members and said their families had urged him to “finish the job.”
His address signals that Washington wants to present the operation as swift and close to completion, even as it keeps open the option of further escalation in the short term.
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